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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29439033">Hell Was The Journey (But It Brought Me Heaven)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/lust_muffin/pseuds/lust_muffin'>lust_muffin</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Lucifer (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Chloe is Tired of Their Shit, Established Chloe Decker/Lucifer Morningstar, F/M, God isn't Much Better, Lucifer Morningstar (Lucifer TV) Needs A Hug, Michael is a Little Shit, Protective Chloe Decker, Protective Lucifer Morningstar (Lucifer TV), post 5A</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-20 13:22:48</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,689</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29439033</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/lust_muffin/pseuds/lust_muffin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Chloe Decker had always known that dating Lucifer Morningstar would come with a slew of complications capable of running any relationship to the ground. And that wasn’t even about his immaturity or his narcissism or any of his other flaws, because underneath all of that, she knew he was a good person. There was no way she would have kept him in her life, in her daughter’s life if she wasn’t 100% sure of that. But the guy had daddy issues on top of daddy issues and that was a thought that constantly crossed her mind long before she found out that his metaphors weren’t metaphors at all and his father was actually the almighty himself.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Chloe Decker &amp; Lucifer Morningstar, Chloe Decker/Lucifer Morningstar</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>89</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Hell Was The Journey (But It Brought Me Heaven)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>It has been a while since I've written anything and it's my first time writting for Lucifer, so bare with me. Of course we don't know yet how a lot of things will play out in the show with God's presence, but that's why we have fanfic, right? lol<br/>I hope this little thing helps with the wait until 5B drops (or you know, until Netflix decides to at least tells us how much more time we have to wait *rolls eyes*).<br/>As it stands now, this will probably be 3 parts, maybe 4. Feel free to hit me with comments, I appreciate constructive criticism, as long as it's done respectifully.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p>
<p></p><div class="ujudUb">
  <p>
    <em>"If you ever fall down straight to the bottom</em>
  </p>
  <p>
    <em>And you can't get back where you started</em>
  </p>
  <p>
    <em>With no strength to stand I'm gonna reach for your hand</em>
  </p>
</div><div class="ujudUb WRZytc">
  <p>
    <em>When the going gets rough right when it's hurting</em>
  </p>
  <p>
    <em>I will be there to help any burden</em>
  </p>
  <p>
    <em>Any place any time</em>
  </p>
  <p>
    <em>You gotta know for you I'll fight"</em>
  </p>
</div><div class="ujudUb WRZytc">
  <p> </p>
</div><div class="ujudUb WRZytc">
  <p>Chloe Decker had always known that dating Lucifer Morningstar would come with a slew of complications capable of running any relationship to the ground. And that wasn’t even about his immaturity or his narcissism or any of his other flaws, because underneath all of that, she knew he was a good person. There was no way she would have kept him in her life, in her <em>daughter’s</em> life if she wasn’t 100% sure of that. But the guy had daddy issues on top of daddy issues and that was a thought that constantly crossed her mind long before she found out that his metaphors weren’t metaphors at all and his father was actually the almighty himself.</p>
  <p>So sitting at a dinner table with the Devil, God, two other angels and another human that was the mother to a half-angel baby? Probably not the best idea and she really should have said no to this outlandish request. But apparently when God asked for something, he wasn’t really asking and Chloe didn’t want to find out if her boyfriend’s dad could still smite her, even in a human form.</p>
  <p>There was also that little part of her brain that reminded Chloe that she would probably have come to this stupid “family dinner” anyway even if her father in-law (<em>holy shit</em>, literally) hadn’t requested her presence. Lucifer couldn’t escape this dinner and she wouldn’t leave him to fend for himself, especially not when she knew how hard he was taking this whole thing. They were partners, sticking together was what they did.</p>
  <p>They had problems, yes. Wounds that Michael loved to put his finger on and press until it bled, capitalizing on Chloe’s already existing fears, but she refused to let her boyfriend’s dickhead twin see the way he could get into her head so easily. She chose to put that all aside for the evening. She loved Lucifer and she wanted to be there for him. Right now, that was the only thing that mattered.</p>
  <p>Things started relatively well. At first it was like any normal, if slightly tense, family dinner. And then like many family dinners, it went straight to Hell, pun very much intended. Linda, bless her heart, tried very hard to make things run smoothly and mediate the mess that was unraveling before their very eyes. Chloe suspected that centuries of therapy wouldn’t help the most dysfunctional family in the universe, though.</p>
  <p>It didn’t take long for Amenadiel and Michael to start arguing. Amenadiel seemed convinced that Michael had given Charlie a cold on purpose. Chloe was very confused by Amenadiel’s accusations. Could Michael really do that? Voices were raised and suddenly the baby monitor came alive. Great, they woke up Charlie and now he was screaming his little lungs out. Linda gave both angels a nasty look before excusing herself to go take care of her crying baby.</p>
  <p>And then you had Lucifer. She had never seen him like this. She had seen him angry, she had seen him disappointed and hurting, but this? This was different. He hadn’t said a single thing since wishing Linda good evening when they got there, probably more out of politeness than anything else. He kept sending furtive glances in his father’s direction and Chloe realized what it was that she was seeing after it happened for the fourth or fifth time. Lucifer was scared. He was terrified of saying something that could set his father off.</p>
  <p>When the realization hit her, it broke Chloe’s heart. No child should be afraid of their parents, super-powered celestial being or not. <em>Especially</em> when you were a celestial being and your dad could erase you out of existence with the snap of his fingers (maybe not even that, God probably just had to think it to make it happen). She couldn’t even entertain the idea of Trixie ever being scared of her or Dan, much less being as terrified as her boyfriend seemed to be of his own father.</p>
  <p>And throughout all the chaos and his sons arguing, God was just sitting there, looking amused for some reason. He kept looking from Amenadiel to Michael, head swiveling from side to side like it was a tennis match. And Chloe wanted to punch him in his divine face. His kids were about to tear each other apart any minute now and he wasn’t going to say anything? She could admit that her desire to punch him was more about Lucifer looking like a scared little boy than Amenadiel and Michael possibly killing each other, though. She liked Amenadiel very much, but she wasn’t about to punch the almighty in the face for him. Much less for Michael. She honestly despised him.</p>
  <p>To make things worse, Michael decided that arguing with Amenadiel about what he did or didn’t do to Charlie wasn’t enough and he had to bring Lucifer into it. But of course Michael calling his brother by his chosen name would be too much like respecting him so he had to refer to Lucifer by his given name. <em>Samael</em>. They had never talked about it, but Chloe knew the name. After all, she had done a ton of research before Kinley found her and filled her head and her already fragile heart with all of that bullshit about how it would be best for everyone if Lucifer went back to Hell.</p>
  <p>Chloe hated that name so much she tensed right along with her boyfriend when it came out of Michael’s mouth. That was another reason for why she thought it would be very justified if she punched God in the face. How could anyone refer to their own kid as “poison” and expect them not to get a complex for life was beyond her.</p>
  <p>She understood why Lucifer seemed to loathe the name and she also knew it was something that was still on his mind even after so long. “I hate that I am poison for anyone who dares to care about me. And especially you,” he told her once, like he could be anything but one of the brightest lights in her life. That name would never describe the man she knew. Even with all of the craziness and celestial drama, Lucifer’s presence in her life would always be a bright spot. Aside from Trixie, everything had been so bleak before she met him.</p>
  <p>“Michael.” God’s voice stopped Michael mid tirade and pulled Chloe out of her thoughts. But then he went on and Chloe wished he hadn’t spoken at all. “Samael has been in his best behavior. He has done nothing to warrant this.”</p>
  <p>The moment that name came out of his father’s mouth, Lucifer’s eyes flashed red, his jaw locking with tension and he gripped the edge of his seat with so much force that Chloe was afraid he was going to break Linda’s furniture. She was the only one that seemed to notice it, though. Everyone else was too busy talking about him like he wasn’t in the room.</p>
  <p>“Really, father? We both know he destroys everything he touches.” Michael’s eyes fell over his twin, a mix of hatred and disgust. Chloe would never understand how someone could hate their own sibling that much. “How about you tell Uriel that Samael has done nothing to deserve this?”</p>
  <p>Lucifer flinched so hard with Michael’s words that Chloe could almost feel it all the way from her own seat. Amenadiel was arguing with Michael again, this time about how unfair he was being to their brother, but Michael was not having it and listing all of the ways why he was in the right. It was “Samael” this and “Samael” that out of both Michael’s and God’s mouths. Lucifer was getting more and more tense every time that name flew around and Chloe just about had it with all of their bullshit.</p>
  <p>“Stop calling him that!” She would probably worry about yelling at God later, once her anger faded. Right now she really didn’t care how she sounded. And look at that, it worked. They all finally shut up. Chloe was so mad it didn’t even register in her mind how her chair almost toppled over when she abruptly stood up. “He hates that name!”</p>
  <p>“Detective…” Lucifer whispered, trying to pull her back down to her seat. Chloe wasn’t having it, though.</p>
  <p>“No, Lucifer.” She pulled her arm free from his grasp a little more forcefully than she intended and the flash of hurt in his eyes made her heart clench inside her chest. Grabbing his hand, she let her thumb caress his knuckles, trying to show him that he wasn’t the one she was angry with. “You don’t deserve to be treated this way. You’re a good person.”</p>
  <p>Michael scoffed, his eyes so full of contempt that Chloe felt like shooting him again. Too bad she didn’t have her gun with her, but if looks could kill… He would be dead and buried with the way she looked at him, angel or not.</p>
  <p>“Tell that to Uriel after what your little boyfriend there did to him,” Michael said and she knew he was intentionally trying to rile his twin up just by the way Lucifer gripped her hand tighter.</p>
  <p>She had no idea who Uriel was (although with a name like that, she suspected another sibling) and she also had no idea what was the story there or what had happened, but Michael didn’t need to know that. She had fooled him before, she could do it again.</p>
  <p>“He did what he had to do,” Chloe answered, putting as much conviction into her words as she could muster.</p>
  <p>Amenadiel probably knew she was bluffing with the quick glance he shot her, but Michael was too busy gapping at her like a fish out of water to realize it. Then again, Amenadiel knew her much better than Michael did and there was also the difference that Lucifer actually talked to Amenadiel about things. He must have known that Lucifer never talked to her about this Uriel and whatever happened there.</p>
  <p>The satisfaction she felt for shutting Michael up didn’t change the fact that she hated this situation, hated that there were things she had no idea about that Lucifer’s twin could still use to mess with their lives. Like telling her she only existed to be a gift for Lucifer hadn’t been enough.</p>
  <p>Speaking of the almighty, he 100% knew she had no idea what she was talking about. He was God, after all. Chloe just felt relief rushing through her veins when he didn’t say anything to contradict her words and let Michael know she was talking out of her ass. One way or another, she was tired of the whole celestial mess.</p>
  <p>Her boyfriend was the Devil, but that didn’t mean they had to put up with his stupid angel twin (if you asked her, Michael could fit humanity’s definition of the Devil much better than Lucifer) or his all-powerful (but still the worst) father. They had much better things to do with their time than being forced to sit through a dinner neither of them wanted to attend in the first place.</p>
  <p>“Tell Linda I’ll call her later,” she told Amenadiel, pulling at Lucifer’s hand to make him stand up. The way Lucifer seemed miles away from there, stuck in his own mind, was worrying her and she just wanted to get him away from his father and Michael. “I think it’s best if we leave now.”</p>
  <p>“Miss Decker…” It was the first time God directly talked to her the whole evening (quite rude when he was the one to request her presence, by the way), but she wasn’t in the mood to listen to whatever it was he had to say right now.</p>
  <p>“No, we’re leaving. I don’t want to be here and Lucifer doesn’t want to be here either. Whatever it is you have to say, you can do it at another time.” The Chloe from a few hours ago would probably be freaking out about sounding so disrespectful, but oh well… In for a penny, in for a pound. She had already yelled at God anyway. “From what I understand, you had a <em>really</em> long time to speak to your son and never bothered. I’m sure you can wait a little longer.”</p>
  <p>“Father!” Michael exclaimed, in what she could tell from a mile away was false outrage. He was a terrible actor. “You will let this… disgusting human speak to you like that?”</p>
  <p>The moment the words “disgusting human” slipped from Michael’s lips, Lucifer snapped out of whatever trance he had been in. His eyes turned fiery, smooth skin giving way to burned flesh and a deep growl escaped his throat. Amenadiel reacted instantly, hands reaching for Lucifer’s arm to try to hold him back, an urgent “Luci, don’t” leaving his mouth. It took Chloe’s brain a second to process what was happening, but fortunately her mind rebooted fast enough for her to step in front of her boyfriend when he advanced on his twin.</p>
  <p>“Lucifer.” Her hands on his chest stopped him in his tracks, his red eyes alight with anger telling her exactly how much he wanted to rip Michael apart. She was really not in the mood for a celestial fist fight in the middle of Linda’s dining room, though. No matter how much she thought that Michael deserved a good smack down. She just wanted to leave. “Not worth it.”</p>
  <p>“Detective, I will not allow him to speak about you this way!” His tone was harsh, but his Devil face disappeared the moment he looked down at her, even though his eyes stayed red.</p>
  <p>“Mind your words, Michael. If you have a problem with my creation, take it up with me.”  Okay, she wasn’t expecting <em>that</em>. Not after God had only stood around watching his kids almost flying at each other’s throats during dinner.</p>
  <p>By “my creation” did he mean her specifically or humanity in general? It was obvious she wasn’t 100% over the whole “gift from God” thing. Chloe had so many questions about it and his words brought them all back to the forefront of her mind.</p>
  <p>Between Michael and Lucifer, she couldn’t tell which one was more surprised. Probably Lucifer, since it didn’t take Michael all that long to protest his father’s words. But then God turned his eyes on Michael and Chloe felt the air around her go still somehow. Awe filled her chest and she wondered if Michael felt the same, because he cowered under his father’s stare.</p>
  <p>“You will treat Miss Decker with the respect she deserves. Have I made myself clear?” His tone made it obvious that it was an order his son was not to disrespect and that weird stillness in the air and the feeling that had filled Chloe up only disappeared when Michael mumbled a reluctant “yes, father.”</p>
  <p>Chloe was more worried about the myriad of emotions flickering in her boyfriend’s eyes, though. She knew he was about to lose whatever thin control he was still holding on to and if the appearance of his Devil face was anything to go by, it wouldn’t be pretty if he snapped. She was thinking meltdown of epic proportions and she didn’t want Lucifer to give Michael (or God, if she was being honest) the chance to see how much of a hold they had on his feelings. Neither of them deserved it, in her opinion. Although, the way his eyes hadn’t turned back to the warm brown she was more used to was a pretty big indication of his inner turmoil.</p>
  <p>“Hey…” she kept her left hand on his chest, her right one making its way to his face to cup his cheek and make him focus on her instead of the anger and resentment directed at his family that she could feel coming off of him in waves.</p>
  <p>She didn’t blame him for feeling the way he felt, of course not. If Chloe was being honest with herself, she felt very much the same. She really did think Lucifer deserved a chance to let everything out, to tell his father and that moronic twin of his how much they fucked up and all of the ways they wronged him. But she also knew her partner better than she knew herself sometimes.</p>
  <p>Right now, he might scream at them and bring his Devil face out in his anger, but if that didn’t change anything, she was afraid he would fall into a pit of despair she wasn’t sure she could pull him back from. Maybe not even Linda. Because deep down, Chloe knew that all her boyfriend wanted was to understand why his twin had turned on him the way he did, why his father had thrown him out just because he had asked for something more for himself. But by the looks of it, he wasn’t going to get the answers he wanted tonight. Michael only seemed interested in stirring shit up and God… Well, he didn’t look like someone that felt in any way sorry for throwing his own kid out.</p>
  <p>And she wasn’t going to let Lucifer torture himself like that, begging for answers from people that weren’t willing to give it to him. She just wanted to tell him that she understood his need for closure and that she would be there for him when he decided to ask the questions he had been asking himself for eons. If screaming at his father and Michael would make him feel better, then so be it. She would scream at them with him when the time came. But the time was not now. If his flickering red eyes were anything to go by, he was too emotionally unstable to deal with that conversation and everything it would entail tonight.</p>
  <p>Lucifer pressed his face into her hand, his jaw still locked with tension, but his stormy eyes lost a bit of their edge when he focused on her. After she got over the whole deal about him being the actual Devil, Chloe was able to admit to herself that she had a thing about the red eyes. But those kinds of thoughts tended to invade her mind at inopportune times, like right now. With a shake of her head to dispel the thoughts, she smiled gently at him when the red turned back to the warm brown she loved so much, the anger that had been in his eyes until now giving place to curiosity.</p>
  <p>“What are you thinking about?” the way he cocked his head at her made him look like a little puppy and she couldn’t help the swell of affection that hit her.</p>
  <p>Using the hand that was still cupping his face, she pulled him down to her level and laid a soft, lingering kiss on his lips. She heard Michael scoffing at them, but Chloe couldn’t care less. Lucifer looked a little dazed when she pulled back, like he always did every time she kissed him. It was like he still couldn’t believe this was happening, and to be quite honest, she could relate. It took so long for them to get here, sometimes it still didn’t feel real.</p>
  <p>She could see Amenadiel smiling gently at them over Lucifer’s shoulder, hear Michael muttering something about being disgusted behind her back and God… Well, he was behind her too so she had no idea what he was doing, but he was silent. Not that Chloe cared about any of them right now.</p>
  <p>“Can you bring the car around? We should go,” she told Lucifer, letting her hand ran down from his cheek back to his chest.</p>
  <p>“I’m not leaving you alone with them,” he snarled at his father and twin over her shoulder, both of his hands gripping her waist and pulling her closer to him protectively.</p>
  <p>“Amenadiel is here, I’ll be fine,” Chloe answered, but her boyfriend still didn’t seem very keen on leaving her side. After the stunt Michael pulled, she could understand his reluctance in leaving her in the same room with that dickhead, but she needed a minute. “Go get the car. I’ll be right there.”</p>
  <p>Breathing deeply, like it pained him to step away from her, Lucifer nodded and turned around to head to the door and do as she asked. He exchanged a look with Amenadiel that clearly was telling his brother to look out for her for the next few minutes. He knew that she could very well take care of herself, but he just didn’t trust Michael or his father at all. Amenadiel clapped him on the shoulder reassuringly on his way out.</p>
  <p>“Look at that… You really did tame the Devil, didn’t you? What a <em>miracle</em>,” Michael taunted her and before any of them really saw what was coming (well, God probably knew what she was about to do since he was God), Chloe closed the distance between them in four quick steps and punched her boyfriend’s idiotic twin right on his nose.</p>
  <p>“Chloe!” Amenadiel grabbed her around the waist and pulled her away from Michael before she could do any more damage to herself. He knew from experience that his jackass of a brother had a hard head.</p>
  <p>She knew she couldn’t hurt Michael, but the satisfaction she felt for the way he stumbled back in surprise when her hand connected with his face or his stunned look made up for the pain in her knuckles right now.</p>
  <p>“Stay away from us or I swear to your dad, Michael… I will find a way to end you,” she snarled, trying to pull herself away from Amenadiel’s hold, but he had a tight grip on her.</p>
  <p>Michael smirked at her and she knew that whatever was about to come out of his mouth would make her want to plummet his face like a punching bag. He never got to say anything, though. His father raised his hand and stopped him before he could.</p>
  <p>“Michael won’t bother you anymore, Miss Decker,” God told her solemnly, but she only scoffed in response, finally getting Amenadiel to release her.</p>
  <p>Chloe couldn’t care less about how sincere or solemn he sounded. She had no reason to trust him when he had thrown his own son out and condemned him to an eternity alone in a place he didn’t deserve to be in, being vilified for things he was not responsible for. All of the anger she felt during the dinner, the feelings she had been trying to keep to herself for Lucifer’s sake, were bursting out of her now that he wasn’t present.</p>
  <p>“Why did you do it? Why did you throw him away like garbage? He’s your <em>son</em>!” Chloe felt Amenadiel’s hand squeezing her shoulder in support.</p>
  <p>She knew her boyfriend and Amenadiel hadn’t always seen eye to eye or had the easiest relationship in the past, but they were close now and it made her feel a little better that at least someone in his family wasn’t a complete asshole to him.</p>
  <p>She wanted God to see her anger, to make it very clear she would always be on Lucifer’s side, but even she could tell she sounded more sad than angry. The detective couldn’t stop herself from thinking about how much damage his father’s actions had caused to Lucifer’s psych. In her mind, all she could see was Lucifer in his Devil form, blaming himself for things he should never have been blamed for in the first place.</p>
  <p>“Miss Decker…” God started with a sigh, but she stopped him before he could get another word in.</p>
  <p>“You know what? Never mind. I don’t want to hear you trying to justify it, I doubt I’ll ever agree with anything you have to say. I’m not the one you have to talk to anyway,” she told him coldly at the same that time Linda came back from Charlie’s room.</p>
  <p>Linda looked around the room, from one tense face to another, noting that Lucifer was nowhere to be found. She knew this dinner was a terrible idea, she just hoped it wouldn’t completely undo all of Lucifer’s progress.</p>
  <p>“So… I guess we won’t be having dessert?” Linda tried to dispel the tense atmosphere, but it fell flat.</p>
  <p>Lucifer chose that moment to come back to the house. Chloe was so mad she hadn’t even heard the sound of the corvette’s engine parking in front of the house. Now that he was back, she just wanted them to leave.</p>
  <p>She told Linda they would talk to her later, making it very clear to the therapist that her friend thought Lucifer would need her once things settled down a little. As Lucifer’s therapist, Linda couldn’t be more pleased with Chloe for supporting the work she had been doing for years now. As Lucifer’s friend, she wished he would open up to Chloe more. They clearly loved each other and Linda believed they could benefit from learning how to communicate better, even though they were better at it now than they had been in the past.</p>
  <p>“Miss Decker, I know you have questions.” God’s voice stopped her in her tracks when they were about to leave the house and made her take a deep breath before turning around to look at him. “About how you came to be. And I know you’ve talked to Amenadiel about it. I hope what I’m about to say at least settles your mind a bit.”</p>
  <p>When she didn’t say anything, just waiting for him to go on and grabbing Lucifer’s hand to try and make him relax a bit when he tensed beside her all over again, God sat down on Linda’s couch like he owned the place.</p>
  <p>“Amenadiel has always been good at figuring things out. It might take a while sometimes, but he eventually comes to the right conclusions.” Chloe saw Amenadiel preen a little at his father’s words. “The fact that you’re not affected by my son’s powers is what I intended when I asked Amenadiel to bless your mother.”</p>
  <p>“So I’m not…” she cleared her throat, trying to keep her tone even. She had talked to Amenadiel about it and promptly tried to forget it, because she would probably go crazy if she thought too much about all of this. “Really not just a gift for him then?”</p>
  <p>“Not in the way the two of you thought at first, no. That would be preposterous. You’re a person, Miss Decker. Not a thing to be played with,” he dismissed her question, like she was being absurd. “You would always be born, you would always cross paths with each other. The only thing I did was to make you immune to his powers so you could know him without any influences.”</p>
  <p>That was what Amenadiel had told her and she accepted that the real gift was her capacity to resist Lucifer’s mojo, but she also still had doubts because in the back of her mind, she remembered how her mother had told her more than once that she and her dad weren’t sure they would ever be able to have children. Chloe told him that, gripping Lucifer’s hand tighter. As much as she wanted answers, she was still scared about what it could mean if she wasn’t supposed to be born without divine intervention. Did it mean her whole life had been a lie? But apparently her boyfriend’s dad found her doubts amusing for some reason, because he only smiled indulgently at her.</p>
  <p>“Funny thing about you humans, actually. You all tend to be a little dramatic at times,” God shrugged at her.</p>
  <p>She would not point out the irony in him calling humans dramatic. She would <em>not</em>.</p>
  <p>“And you know everything about being dramatic, don’t you?” Well, Lucifer didn’t have the same restraint she did.</p>
  <p>The sarcasm dripping from his tone made her feel better, though. That was the Lucifer she knew. Her partner was still there, still himself even after the disaster that this evening had been so far. He would be okay. They both would be okay.</p>
  <p>“Just because your parents were having a hard time conceiving for a while, it doesn’t mean they never would. It was a few days after your conception that I asked Amenadiel to come down, actually. You were already a reality by that point, Miss Decker,” the almighty ignored his son’s little jab at him and looked pointedly at their clasped hands, an amused smile gracing his lips. “This is all on you, my dear. Like I said, the only thing I’ve done was to make you immune to his powers. I had no hand in anything before or after that.”</p>
  <p>“But you knew it would happen. I mean, you’re... you,” Chloe pointed out, but the relief she felt was palpable. Lucifer also relaxed slightly beside her. That had been weighting on both of them, even if they had found a way to look past it.</p>
  <p>“There was a possibility, yes. You always seem to be drawn to each other, no matter which scenario I’m looking at. But it doesn’t always end up like this,” he made a gesture indicating the two of them and Chloe was pretty sure her head would explode with all of the celestial craziness. No matter which scenario? What did that even mean? “Free will is a funny thing. One tiny different choice and nothing would be as it is. Maybe you wouldn’t have stayed in each other’s lives for as long as you have now, or maybe you would still work together, maybe still even be friends but never more than that. I could see every possible scenario, but I couldn’t tell which route you would take until you made that choice. Despite what you might think, I don’t control your choices. So no, creating the perfect Mrs. Morningstar, as you once put it, was not my initial intention, Miss Decker.”</p>
  <p>Of course he knew exactly what she had said to Lucifer and Amenadiel that day in the interrogation room. It was kind of creepy, actually. A bit voyeuristic if you asked her. Chloe was pretty sure she was about to have the worst headache of her life. Now she was thinking about different scenarios, different paths she could have taken, different choices she could have made that would change the outcome of her relationship with Lucifer. And shit… She was so incredibly happy that they were so stubborn and unable to let each other go, even when it seemed like that would be the best for both of them. All of the times they hurt each other… What if one of them had given up?</p>
  <p>“What was your intention, dad? Care to enlighten us?” Lucifer’s question pulled Chloe out of her spiraling thoughts.</p>
  <p>Maybe Lucifer wouldn’t get the answers he wanted tonight, but now that his dad seemed to be in a sharing mood, at least about this particular subject, her boyfriend looked determined to get <em>some</em> answers. The only problem was that God’s talkative mood didn’t seem to be there when his son was the one asking the questions. He only stared at Lucifer for a long time, no words coming out of his mouth.</p>
  <p>Chloe realized that whatever the answer was to Lucifer’s question, her boyfriend figured it out somehow just by the way his father was looking at him. His hand tightened in hers almost painfully (she wouldn’t tell him that because he would feel bad thinking he hurt her), his whole frame shaking with either rage or pain (probably both) and his eyes flickered to red and back.</p>
  <p>“Unbelievable!” His sudden exclamation made Linda shush him, after all, it had been a pain to put Charlie to sleep again after they had woken him up the first time.</p>
  <p>“What is it?” Chloe was very confused again, something that had been a constant since she learned the truth.</p>
  <p>“I knew making her able to resist you would intrigue you, son. The only person you would ever cross paths with that wouldn’t fall at your feet with the snap of a finger,” God shrugged, like that was enough answer, but it only seemed to make Lucifer’s anger grow.</p>
  <p>“So you decided that bringing all of the… the pain and danger that being associated with me brought into her life would be justified just to teach me a bloody lesson?! She could have died more than once just for knowing me!” And there was his Devil face again. His family really did seem to know how to bring out the worst in him.</p>
  <p>“That was never going to happen,” his father answered dismissively, like Lucifer was being foolish. “None of the scenarios I’ve envisioned had that outcome.”</p>
  <p>“We didn’t know that, did we, you omniscient bastard?! <em>I </em>didn’t know that!” All of the times he thought he would lose Chloe flashed through his mind. The last one being only a few days ago was still an open wound in his heart.</p>
  <p>“You’ve always been a curious being. Always wanting to know the why of everything. But I knew eventually your curiosity would turn into fondness. It happens in every scenario, even the ones where you end up going your separate ways later for one reason or another. Knowing her always leaves a mark on you, makes you look at humanity in a different way. It was time for you to learn how to care about more than just yourself, Samael,” and that was exactly the wrong thing to say, not just because of how Lucifer reacted but it also snapped Chloe out of her own mind.</p>
  <p>“Do not call me that!” He growled at his father, hellfire shining in his eyes and his wings popping out in his anger.</p>
  <p>Later Chloe would wonder what came over her to do what she did, she would freak out about letting her instincts get the best of her, but that was a problem for future Chloe. Current Chloe wasn’t thinking at all when she shook her hand free of Lucifer’s hold, marched right up to his dad and punched him in the jaw. At least she would be able to say she satisfied her need to punch God in his divine face.</p>
  <p>Aside from Linda’s loud gasp, the room fell deadly silent. And Chloe… Well, Chloe was in over her head anyway. Telling the almighty how absolutely stupid his reasoning was couldn’t get her in more trouble than she probably already was, right? She was just so mad. For Lucifer. And for herself.</p>
  <p>“You say I’m not a thing to be played with, but that’s exactly what you did. You <em>used me</em> to teach him a lesson you <em>thought</em> he needed to learn.” Chloe didn’t know if her voice had ever sounded this cold before. “If you think that’s what he needed, you never really knew your son in the first place.”</p>
  <p>Chloe didn’t give him any time to reply, turning her back on him and marching straight to the front door, only stopping long enough to pull her boyfriend by the hand behind her. Lucifer’s Devil face had disappeared again, giving way to an expression of pure shock, like he couldn’t believe what she just did. His wings were down, feathers ruffled and dragging on the floor like they were also shocked. If she were a cartoon character, though, she would probably have fumes coming out of her ears right now because of how mad she was.</p>
  <p>Lucifer never needed to learn how to care. He always did. Sometimes too much. Wasn’t that why they were even here to begin with? Because he cared too much about Delilah? About getting justice? Maybe he didn’t always know how to show he cared, but he always did.</p>
  <p>What he needed was Linda giving him a safe place to share his feelings and guiding him through things he didn’t know how to deal with. It was Ella’s and Trixie’s random hugs just because they adored him, teaching him that it was okay to show affection. What he needed was Chloe reminding him time and time again that she was there for him. That’s what he always needed. People who cared about him, people who <em>loved</em> him and allowed him to express whatever he felt so he didn’t feel like he needed to hide how much he cared.</p>
  <p>“Why did you let her do that?” Chloe heard Michael asking his father, while Amenadiel followed them to the door.</p>
  <p>“You cannot give them free will and then expect them not to express themselves,” God’s tone sounded so condescending that if Chloe wasn’t one foot out of the door already, she would have turned around just to punch him again. “I’m afraid Miss Decker has hurt herself more than she hurt me.”</p>
  <p>That last part was probably true, though. Did all celestials have such hard heads? Her hand was throbbing painfully, but she refused to acknowledge the pain while in the same room with them, especially Michael.</p>
  <p>“Brother…” Amenadiel’s voice pulled Chloe’s attention back to the two of them in time to see the dark-skinned angel gesturing towards Lucifer’s wings before he opened the door for them.</p>
  <p>“Right,” Lucifer mumbled, putting his wings away before stepping out of the house after Chloe.</p>
  <p>Someday she would be able to take a good look at his beautiful white wings without being in the middle of some celestial drama. First time she saw them, Lucifer had to leave for Hell and she was left standing on his balcony, tears streaming down her face. And now… Well.</p>
  <p>“If you’re going to lecture me about how I shouldn’t have done that, save it. I’m not sorry at all,” Chloe told Amenadiel when he turned to her, ready to tell her something.</p>
  <p>“I wasn’t going to,” he smiled at her, with a shake of his head. “I was just going to tell you to ice your hand. Michael has a hard head.”</p>
  <p>“You’ve punched Michael too?” Lucifer turned big eyes on her, his voice coming out as squeaky as a pre-teen.</p>
  <p>“He deserved it. They both did.” She would punch them again if she had to.</p>
  <p>“You shouldn’t…” He stopped mid-sentence when she glared at him. “Not because of them. Do you know how many times I’ve wanted to do exactly what you did? Many, <em>many</em> times. No, because of this.”</p>
  <p>He caught her right hand in his delicately, but even with all the care, she still winced in pain. Her knuckles were swollen and red, a little cut across her middle finger’s knuckle was stinging a bit and Chloe still didn’t regret a thing. Lucifer ran his thumb over her knuckles and she reflexively pulled her hand away. Her hand hurt like a motherfucker now that the adrenaline from punching <em>God</em> was subsiding. It was going to be a nightmare to hold her gun like that. She hoped they didn’t catch a case any time soon.</p>
  <p>“You hurt yourself,” he sighed deeply, his eyes never leaving her injured hand.</p>
  <p>“Worth it.” Chloe said goodbye to Amenadiel and moved in the car’s direction, expecting that her boyfriend would get the hint that she just wanted to leave.</p>
  <p>Lucifer shook his head at her retreating back and Amenadiel just laughed.</p>
  <p>“Not funny, brother,” he growled at the older angel.</p>
  <p>“It’s not like she’s dying, Luci. A little ice and she’ll be ready to punch our family again in no time,” he answered in an amused tone, receiving an icy glare in exchange and then Lucifer was getting in the car without saying another word.</p>
  <p>Shaking his head at Lucifer’s overprotectiveness, Amenadiel went back inside. One of these days his brother would start a war because Chloe Decker got a paper cut.</p>
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  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I have no beta and English isn't my first language so any and every mistake you might encounter is mine.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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